


After Hours

by neohime (galactickitten)



Category: Steins;Gate
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Canon Universe, F/M, Sleepy Cuddles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-29
Updated: 2018-05-29
Packaged: 2019-05-15 15:14:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,648
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14792903
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/galactickitten/pseuds/neohime
Summary: Just two scientists finding comfort in each other.





	After Hours

**Author's Note:**

> i binged watched steins;gate in two days and binged what's currently aired of steins;gate 0 yesterday and wrote this at 2 AM to cope with my feelings so if the characterization is a little off well...now you know why :) enjoy!

How many times?

How many times had he seen her _die?_

In all honesty he’d lost count at this point. Whether or not that was morbid didn’t matter to him anymore, the scene was so engraved in his memory that no amount of drinks or hard drugs would ever be able to dull the pain. Hell, even a _lobotomy_ would probably be useless. At this point he knew two things:

He needed to save Mayuri.

He was going to need a _lot_ of therapy once this was over.

They had managed to push the fateful event to a few days in the future; he had more time to figure something out now, but that did little to lessen his anxiety. If anything it just added to it; knowing the clock was ticking and every second he wasn’t trying to find a solution was a second wasted. If he paused to think about it for too long the anxiety would become unmanageable to the point he felt like he was gasping for air. There wasn’t a moment to lose.

And yet here he was, strolling through the streets of Akihabara in the middle of the night.

Okabe was not one for midnight strolls, but Kurisu had practically thrown him out of the lab earlier that evening once the other lab members had gone home for the day.

"You’re going to be of no use if your mind isn’t in the right place.” She said, her tone a mixture of concern and annoyance, “Go outside, get some air, maybe go for a walk or something. I’ll keep working while you’re gone, so just try to calm yourself down before you come back, okay?”

He could have protested, hell, he could’ve easily have used his physical strength to resist her, but there was no arguing with someone as stubborn as Makise Kirisu. So he did what he was told, and left.

His mind hasn’t really settled (could you _blame_ the guy?), but he had managed to find a convenience store on his way back to the lab. Picking up a pair of Dk. Peppers, Okabe made his way back to the lab to see what his assistant had managed to complete in the time he’d been absent.

“I’m back.” He stated simply, closing the door behind him and removing his shoes with his free hand, the other still holding onto the plastic bag from the convenience store.

No response.

Part of his mind was ready to press the panic button; had something _happened_ while he was gone? Was she _hurt?_ No, impossible. SERN (and the universe for that matter) were concerned with Mayuri, not Makise, as far as he knew. He could remain calm.

For now.

Coming to the conclusion that their humble lab had not been raided and that all was well, he proceeded to scope out the laboratory for his assistant. It’s not like she’d _leave_ without telling him, right? However, he didn’t have to search for very long.

At the desk, slumped over the keyboard, sat Makise Kurisu, very clearly _asleep_. The screen had dimmed due to her absence, but he could still clearly see the hundreds of tabs she had open, a testament to the various documents, websites, and forums she had been researching in an attempt to help him. Okabe couldn’t help but smile a little at the thought.

He took a moment to take in the scene before him. One would hardly be able to tell the always proper yet snarky Kirisu was the same one fast asleep in front of him. Seeing her asleep, the steady rise and fall of her body, the soft expression on her face, he couldn’t believe it was the same woman that day in and day out scoffed at him and argued with him. She seemed so gentle, so vulnerable, that some primitive part of his brain suddenly sparked to life, filled with the urge to protect her.

But he quickly pushed that thought aside, clearing his throat and ignoring the obvious pink tint his cheeks had taken on. Setting aside the Dk Peppers (they could drink them tomorrow, after all), Okabe assessed the situation. He could move her seat away from the desk, but that’d only cause her to slump, fall over, and wake up in a rather horrible way and chew his ear off the minute she came to her senses. He could also just leave her there, but having been in that position before, he knows it's not comfortable and that she's bound to wake up feeling stiff tomorrow. No matter how many options came to mind, there was only one course of action he could reasonably take.

He sighed, bending down and gently hooking one arm right under her knees, the other awkwardly cradling her back. With a huff, he stood back up, now cradling the girl in his arms. He could practically hear Daru now: “You’ve just activated a romance flag! You better not waste this opportunity!”

Or something like that.

Careful not to trip, Okabe quietly made his way to the couch. Gently, he lays her head on the decorative pillow, carefully placing her on the couch so as to not disturb her probably science-filled dreams. He bent down to grab the lab blanket, but something stopped him dead in his tracks. Miss Genius Girl had shifted in her sleep, flinging one arm off the couch and looping itself around his arm. For what felt like a minute he just darted his eyes between their interlocked arms and her sleeping figure. He tried to slip his arm away from her grip, but her grip only tightened as the other arm took hold of him as well.

“Papa...” She muttered softly in her sleep, from a realm far from the one he was currently in.

He stopped and simply looked at her, the conversation they’d shared before flooding his mind. No matter how snarky or sassy she was, underneath that cold, scientist exterior was a little girl. A girl who above all else, still yearned for her father’s validation.

And just like that, the urge to protect her came forth yet again. He cursed under his breath, knowing he’d regret this in the morning.

Slowly, he slid onto the couch to join her, his free arm draping the blanket over the two of them. He only hoped his thundering heartbeat wouldn’t wake her, but if it was bothering her she made no effort to show it. He wasn’t exactly in a comfortable position, nor was he tired, but he dare not shift unless he wanted to wake her up and invoke her confused, tsundere-filled wrath.

The girl, upon sensing a source of heat, instinctively moved closer, burying her face into Okabe’s chest. He felt his breath catch in his throat, but after a few seconds released it with a sigh once he realized she had not awoken.

“Sleep well.” He whispered to no one in particular, before closing his eyes. It’s not like she heard him, but it felt like something he was supposed to say in this situation.

Never in a thousand years did Okabe Rintarou, world-renown mad scientist, expect to be borderline cuddling with child prodigy Makise Kurisu, and yet here he was.

Funny how life works out sometimes, isn’t it?

With another deep sigh he settled in for the night. Days earlier if asked how he felt about Miss Kurisu his answer would’ve been very clear; she was an aggressive, snarky, short-tempered, conceited, perverted child prodigy.

Now?

Now he wasn’t sure.

Thoughts of all kinds swirled around his head whenever she came up, but no matter how tumultuous his thoughts were, she always found a way to silence the storm in his head. She was always by his side, always ready for whatever came next, no matter how ridiculous or outlandish it was.

The pink tint returned to his cheeks yet again, but he quickly brushed those thoughts aside. It was getting late, if he was planning on getting any sleep tonight (no matter how uncomfortable this position was), he needed to go to sleep soon. Quieting the thoughts in his mind for the night, Okabe’s attention focused on trying to ease himself into slumber.

Unbeknownst to him, the redhead underneath him stirred, opening her eyes ever so slightly. Even through the haze of sleepiness she knew where she was, and knew who the shadow of a figure lying next to her was. Maybe if she’s been more awake she would’ve thrown him off and yelled at him for trying to cozy up to her while she was asleep, but as of right now she had no desire to throw the mad scientist off the couch. If anything, she welcomed the warmth, it was comforting in a way she wouldn’t have expected from him. She felt her cheeks flush with color and heat, but couldn’t really bring herself to get worked up over it.

“Goodnight, Okabe.”

Is why she wanted to say, but she elected to simply mouth those words quietly unless she wanted to alert him to the fact she was awake. Burying herself deeper into his chest, she allowed his scent to fill her nose, his body heat to radiate throughout her, and the gentle rise and fall of his chest to lull her to sleep.

The two scientists settled in for the night, taking comfort in each other in a way neither had probably expected. In a way, however, they welcomed this peculiar situation, a needed escape from the chaos they were facing. They’d take shelter in this refuge, using it to hide themselves from the rest of the world. If only for tonight.

And just like that, sleep came for the pair.

And whether they wanted to admit it or not, it was the best night’s sleep either of them had had in a long, _long_ time.


End file.
